U.N. warns Mali attack could be war crime

An “outraged” U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon expressed his condolences to the families of the victims.

The United Nations Security Council condemned a rocket attack that killed two U.N. peacekeepers and a contractor Saturday in northeast Mali, warning it could be a war crime.

In a unanimous declaration, the council’s 15 member countries urged the Malian government to “swiftly investigate this attack and bring the perpetrators to justice and stressed that those responsible for the attack should be held accountable.”

“The members of the Security Council underlined that attacks targeting peacekeepers may constitute war crimes under international law,” a statement added.

An “outraged” U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon expressed his condolences to the families of the victims and wished the wounded a speedy recovery.

Another 20 people were injured, four of them seriously. Ban said they were peacekeepers and civilian personnel.

The Council, like Ban, stressed its “full support” for the U.N. mission in Mali, MINUSMA, and the French troops that support it.

Ansar Dine extremists claimed the pre-dawn attack on the camp in Kidal, a week after a deadly siege at a Bamako hotel shocked the country.

The contractor killed in the attack was from Burkina Faso, according to the Security Council.